Editors Note: This is NOT a paid political advertisement or endorsed by anyone other than the writer / author of this blog. On Monday, August 19th, Democratic Presidential candidate Julián Castro unveiled a platform focused on advancing the welfare of animals around the globe, both domestic and wildlife. It would raise standards for factory farms […]

They said it couldn’t happen. They said wild salmon would never breach penned-up fish farms. They were wrong. And that’s a big problem. On June 11, 2019, members from the ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ / Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation, including Tribal Parks Guardians and members of the Clayoquot Sound Indigenous Salmon Alliance, boarded and inspected open net pen […] […]

President Trump’s declaration of a national emergency has escalated tensions all across the southern border. The large majority of residents who live near the Mexican border don’t want the Wall built. Their reasons include fear of the government’s use of eminent domain, the high probability of flooding from a built wall, concern of escalating tensions […] […]

Just when you thought your food choices were clear and safe. UK firm The John Innes Centre has applied for permission to plant experimental genetically modified wheat and broccoli in open fields at their farm outside Norwich, in the United Kingdom. The research company hopes to begin two small-scale field trials in April. In 2017, […]

When you consider our nation’s health, the quality of our food, its decreasing nutritional value and the increased degradation of our farmland, it’s not a pretty picture — and the challenges related to these issues keep growing. By 2050 the world’s population will likely reach close to 9 billion people. To feed everyone, we’ll need […]

Today is #WorldAIDSDay, a day when the world’s focus is on the fight against HIV/AIDS.

There are already a number of medications on the market to help ease symptoms of HIV.According to the World Health Organization, since the HIV/AIDS epidemic began more than 30 years ago, over 70 million people have contracted HIV. No vaccine exists to help prevent this life-threatening disease. But there’s hope on this front.

Johnson & Johnson, in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, National Institutes of Health and others, has begun the first efficacy trial of an investigational mosaic HIV-1 preventive vaccine. This “mosaic” would likely be comprised of various genes that would be manipulated in order to produce an effective vaccine.

“Developing a vaccine against HIV is a top priority and our best hope for a world without AIDS. Finding an effective HIV vaccine to protect people at risk has been a major scientific challenge, but today there is new optimism that we can get there,” said Johnson & Johnson’s Chief Scientific Officer Dr Paul Stoffels, M.D..

The new,large-scale study (HVTN 705/HPX2008) (also known as “Imbokodo”, the Zulu word for “rock”) will study the effectiveness of the vaccine produced by Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies, a part of Johnson & Johnson. It will evaluate whether the vaccine regimen is safe and if it’s able to reduce the incidence of HIV infection among 2,600 women in sub-Saharan Africa.

The problem with developing any vaccine so far has been that there are many strains and subtypes of the virus that causes HIV/AIDS, and different strains are common in different parts of the world, which has posed challenges. The mosaic vaccine the “Imbokodo” study is focusing on was developed based on a variety of HIV subtypes.

“The ultimate goal is to deliver a ‘global vaccine’ that could be deployed in any geographic region to help protect vulnerable populations at risk of infection,” Johan Van Hoof, M.D., Janssen Vaccines & Prevention B.V. and Therapeutic Area Head, R&D, Infectious Diseases & Vaccines said.

If the vaccine proves safe and successful, it could save millions of lives. Let’s hope for them to discover what it takes to finally create a life-saving preventative.